Not sure how it happened. But it doesn't look like a door ding...more like a rock that was kicked up and dented the panel BUT without any scuffing or scratching. No scratch & no paint chip. .

I took it to my PDR guy who has worked with me for the past 2 years on my cars...and he couldn't access it. Upon inspection and attempting, He stated that because it's a convertible that the car is double walled down in there low on the Quarter Panel that there is nothing he can do.

I accepted this and moved on...however I've noticed that I can't stop looking for it or at it everytime I'm near my car. LOL It pisses me off because my car is pristine. I can't just leave it.

I thought about "Glue pulling" treating it as hail damage...after I left the PDR guy. But he didn't mention that. He always uses the tools.. no glue from what I've observed. I'm not sure if that would work...but it's extra small in size...about the size of a B.B. Pellet.

He asked me if I minded him Drilling the inside of the fender (behind the wheel well linings, etc) I said NO. Thought about it even days later but NO, can't do that.

I've thought about Having my BMW dealership remove the interior panels and such to allow access for PDR...and then having them re-install the panels after repair... BUT what if the "double walled" area on the low Quarter Panel is non accessible from there even with the interior taken upart

The last option here & possibly the best is painting. Since the ding is Micro-sized (really is small) I'm thinking the body work would be a small area...and the blend job would be a small area. Not sure of the clear coating needed for the area...but my paint guy is a pro who works for the BMW dealership's body ship. He's already airbrushed my stone chips and repainted/blended my lip of my front spoiler that was scuffed badly. Paint match for the hard to match Blue Water Metallic was spot on. He's repaired a VO 1M coupe that was abused and dented. Looked As-New when repaired. SO I'm confident in his work. He also restored my brother's brilliant red 91 318is in a ground up restoration job. The guy is a top notch pro in everyway.

Yes, the photo is hard to see. I tried to add the black circle/black dot to the exact location of the ding. It's hard to see, but it's right above the side skirt / rocker panel. It's a generalization.

I Thought about another PDR guy..but this guy I've used has done great work for me in the past where as other guys my parents have used have just caused "massaging" metal scars. Needless to say they don't have those cars anymore or use those guys. This was about 5 years ago with similiar results and the same subpar PDR guy. They currently both have 1 series cars. (Dad has a VO 1M). If they get a Ding I'd still refer them to my guy.

The body shop I'd go to for paint/body repair is top notch. I 'm pretty confident that they are the best in my area after working on my car, my brother's E30 restoration, and that E82 SBM 1 series M coupe press car that was repaired-body work wise had superior results and looked good as new.

I don't want to mess with original paint for a ding so small I can't really capture in a photograph..but I will have to go that route for peace of mind. Can't stand looking at it. I've actually held off my bi-monthly polish/wax routine because I'd like to take care of this first lol.

A PDR guy that does the glue pull can get that dent out. They glue a little stick on the paint on the outside then they use a tool that attaches to the stick and they pull the dent out. You need to search your your area for a guy that does the glue pull. I had several dents removed with the glue pull technique and it works great. I had a dent on my 1M roof could not get to it unless I pulled the headliner big job. Glue pull on the roof removed the dent in less than five minutes. I have big auto collection and use PDR guys all the time. It seems my nice cars are a magnet for people to park very close and dent my cars. Don't suffer find a glue pull guy.

Hopefully removing the interior panels is worth it for PDR being able to access the ding. After sticking his tool thing down in the the panel He mentioned that down in there it's double-walled. Hmmm. Wish I had the E88 sheetmetal diagram or something that shows the integrity of an E88...

Drilling there is no drilling with the the glue pull technique. They use a hot glue gun to glue this little stick onto the paint. The paint is not damaged and there is no drilling. When they are done they just pull the stick off from the side and the paint is perfect. Watch the video this is a large dent but it works for smaller dents also. Like I wrote earlier I had a dent similar to what you have but it was on the roof of my bmw and the glue pull removed it in just a few minutes. This is what the PDR guys use when they have a dent they can not get to. It's a new technique that started a few years back. Find a PDR guy in your area that does.

Yes this is the route...I've been lusting for but I'm located in Northeastern PA (Scranton area) and I have few resources!
I have lots of contacts and so forth with my dad being president of our local bmw cca chapter for 30+ years. But the PDR guys he knows are subpar. My guy is good, but he didn't mention it to me (maybe he doesn't know I'm full aware of glue pulling n hail damage PDR repairs..

I'll call him again today and ask him about glue pulling and ask him what tabs and stuff he has..he was busy working on a multiple dinged-up 10' S6 when I stopped to meet up with him on location...possibly he was pressed for time.

If no...then I may have to take a longgg trip somewhere and I don't want to have to drive to an unfamiliar place inNY or J to get a ding out. Northeastern roads this time of year are brutal too. Ask my hood!

Thanks...My guy does high end cars such as porsche but not as often obviously. When I met with him he was doing work on a 2010 Audo S6. Man did that have dings on all panels...light dings and such...but I guess the owner/prev. owner didn't care where he parked...as long as it was close and open.

For top talent PDR will have to reach out to Philly/NJ for service. My brother lives in Charlotte, Anyone know of a good PDR place there??? Philly/CT/NJ/VA/NC anyone know of a good place to take it? (Dealership or Independent PDR tech)
The ding is very, very small...not even sure if PDR guys can remove such a small ding.
I'm almost certain that 98% of people would have a hard time spotting it..but I can see it if I look for it. Yes I Have to look for it but it came up on me Easy upon a quick wash/wax detail.. Obviously the more reflection you have the easier it is to see.. Makes waxing a pristine car worthless when you step back to admire your detail work & the reflection, shine, etc..

Oh and "painting": This may be the easiest way to repair this...spray/blend/clear. As mentioned I have a guy who works wonders and works on NEW bmws everyday. He's a E92& E28 M5 owner who works at my local BMW dealership (I call him the body shop wizard!)

Any thoughts?

The ding is right above the belt line rear quarter panel/pass side. It's right above the rocker panels.

--And for those confused in size of the ding; It's super small. Literally the size of this (). <-Actual size I think a rock kicked up and hit there, causing the ding. No way is it a door ding..

Went to my friend the painter today at my local bmw dealership and I got another contact...if he will work on my car. According to my PDR guy he said if it's a quarter panel and a convertible he would instantly be weary about even working on the car.
Access with the top down...but upon attempt there's panels that are double walled down in there....making for tough access. As stated previously he asked me if I would like the inner rear fender well drilled for access. I said No.

From here I'll attempt to contact this highly recommended PDR guy who was recommended to me from my friend the bmw paint shop guy. If it's a fail...then I'm going to either have to live with it...or get paint work spot blended.

Looking for insight on this. Not sure if anyone has gone the paint route for "dings" when PDR is not possible. I don't want to just live with it so right about now that is not an option.